Give path consistency and restored display separate pass conditions
When an EPUB image stops displaying after a file move, a complete repair needs two kinds of evidence. First, the asset must exist at its new location, all source references must point there, and the old path must reach zero. Second, a rebuilt EPUB must display the image in the target reading environment. Passing the first condition does not prove the second.
The article-specific Stage 4 run established only path consistency. It explicitly rewrote four references across three manuscripts and measured old path zero and new path four. The status remains partial. Automatic correction, EPUB regeneration, and restored reader rendering were not verified. The current answer is therefore bounded: stale paths can be isolated and repaired, but this evidence does not yet show that the image displays again.
Start after the incident and keep a two-stage evidence record
This workflow begins with the symptom “the image is not displaying,” not with a preventive ledger before a planned move. Record two separate stages:
| Stage | Pass condition | Current status | Next investigation after failure |
|---|---|---|---|
| Path consistency | Asset at destination, old 0, new 4, distribution 1-1-2 | Partially verified | Location, filename, and reference update |
| Restored display | Rebuilt EPUB displays the target image | Unverified | Corruption, format, CSS, package registration, or reader |
Do not merge both rows into one “fixed” result. If path consistency passes and the symptom remains, stop repeating the same rewrite and investigate another cause.
Use the uneven four-reference set for the path stage
The sample image was images/map.png, moved to assets/maps/map.png. Before the move, C01.md contained one reference, C02.md contained one, and C03.md contained two. Preserve that 1-1-2 distribution as well as the total of four.
Before selecting a path diagnosis, confirm that the image exists at the destination and that its filename, extension, and letter case have not changed unexpectedly. A missing or damaged image cannot be made visible by editing a reference string.
The measured action was an explicit four-reference rewrite
Stage 4 recorded reference usage before the move, reviewed the change from images/map.png to assets/maps/map.png, moved the image, and explicitly rewrote four occurrences across the three manuscripts. It then searched for both path values again.
The measured values were references_before=4, reference_files_before=3, rewritten_occurrences=4, old_path_matches=0, and new_path_matches=4. The final distribution remained one reference in C01.md, one in C02.md, and two in C03.md.
planned_files was 0. This result must not be described as four automatic corrections caused by the move alone. The measured operation was an explicit refs rewrite after the affected references had been counted.
Leave the restored-display row empty after path repair
Old path zero and new path four establish that the source strings point to the new location. They do not establish that the image entered the EPUB package, that CSS did not hide it, that the reader supports the image format, or that the image appeared on screen.
A restored-display check would rebuild the EPUB, inspect the package for the target asset and reference, and then open the affected location in the reading environment where the symptom occurred. Those operations were not part of this Stage 4 run. The rendering row therefore remains unverified rather than being filled with the path result.
Use partial to select the next cause, not to claim success
If the image still does not display after path consistency passes, investigate these causes separately:
- A damaged image at the destination
- An image format outside the relevant output or reader path
- A missing manifest resource or XHTML reference inside the EPUB
- CSS that hides or collapses the image
- Behavior limited to one reading application
The run did not eliminate these causes. It also did not test automatic tracking after Finder or cloud-sync moves, collaborative changes, or updates outside the workspace. Path consistency must not close those open questions.
Separate documented Rune Studio automation from the run
Rune Studio’s documented Mac feature set can update relative image and link paths in txt, text, md, and markdown files when workspace files are moved or renamed. Parent-directory references using ../ are supported. External URLs and page anchors are not changed.
That documented capability is a candidate for reducing broken references after reorganization. This article’s Stage 4 run used an explicit command-line rewrite, so the public capability is not evidence that these four references followed the move automatically or that rendering recovered.
Conclusion: the evidence currently ends at path repair
In the controlled sample, four references across three manuscripts were aligned to the new path while preserving the 1-1-2 distribution, and the old path reached zero. That is the path-consistency result. Because the EPUB was not rebuilt and reader rendering was not tested, the image-not-displaying incident is not verified as fixed.
An incident closes only when both path consistency and restored display pass. If the first stage passes while the symptom remains, move to a non-path diagnosis. The partial status states the current investigation position precisely: references repaired, rendering unverified.
